Winter Storm — City and Borough of Juneau, Alaska

2026-01-04 to 2026-01-05 · City and Borough of Juneau, Alaska

Event narrative

Light, dry, fluffy snow fell through the evening of the 4th with social media reports of around 5 inches between Lena Point and the Mendenhall Valley by 8-930pm. Periods of moderate to heavy snow fell through the night and east winds increased after midnight, gusting 20-30mph at the airport. By 730am around 7 inches of snow was reported out the road and other reports from around the area ranged from 4-7 inches. Snowfall rates increased through the morning of the 5th with visibility falling to a half mile at the airport and sustained winds of 20-30mph with gusts of around 40mph. This caused blowing and drifting snow, which hampered accumulation measurements at the airport. At 1130am, reports from Douglas Island were 9 inches and counting, then at noon a measurement from downtown Juneau had reached 11-12 inches. A large tree was reported across Glacier Highway out the road at 1250pm and brief power outages were also noted during the day. Temperatures steadily warmed through the event with continued wind and a transition to rain occurred in the evening between 6-10pm. Final snowfall reports from Douglas reached 12-15 inches in the evening. The NWS office in the Mendenhall Valley measured 7.1 inches out of this event and the Lena Point COOP measured 6.9 inches, both with some compaction due to the change to rain.

Monday the 5th was set to be the first day back to school after winter break, but the district opted to close schools the evening of the 4th based on anticipated heavy snowfall rates during the middle of the day Monday, tall snow banks, and unsafe walking conditions. Similarly, after the significant snowfall in December and this additional snow, plus the expected transition to rain adding to the weight, closures to borough facilities and other businesses were made for the 5th and 6th while inspections could be made along with roof clearing. An avalanche advisory was issued by CBJ on the 5th due to elevated risk for the downtown and Thane areas. Numerous small avalanches were noted over the subsequent days, but did not reach any structures. Damage to roofs, outbuildings, and a vehicle were reported via social media on the 6th and two additional boats sunk in Juneau harbors. Total value of property damage from just this January storm is unknown. The State approved a joint disaster declaration for the City and Borough of Juneau and the Central Council of the Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska on January 6th for the culmination of December and January snows, plus the added snow weight with rain.

Wider weather episode

Temperatures cooled across SE Alaska along with outflow winds during the first couple days of January after December's big snow dump. This allowed the next system that moved in from the west on the 4th and 5th to start out as snow. Prefrontal snow showers during the evening of the 4th added to the storm total snow for parts of the northern and central panhandle, then the main system moved in overnight with heavy snow on Monday the 5th (set to be the first day back at school after Winter Break for most locations). The southern panhandle saw a change over to rain during the day on the 5th, then the rain/snow line pushed northward through the night and into the morning of the 6th. Some strong winds accompanied the front, starting out of the north then shifting to the south with the front and causing temperatures to rise.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1315947. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.